Boy Window Chapter 17: The Car Is The Best Part

Last time in Boy Window...We are back in Amber's POV and her mom comes home makes some awkward comments about her and Liam's sexual tension and tells them that their dad moved back to town. Instead of calling the cops, or getting a restraining order, Jake beats up furniture and Amber cries because she lost her happily ever after. The chapter changes back to Liam's POV for the last 5 pages where Liam suggests kidnapping Amber as a solution to their problems.

Chapter 17

“~Amber~”

I'm numb to the pain of this stupidity. Let's hope it holds.

“Silently, I tried to convince myself that this boy Johnny probably wouldn't even want to talk to me”

Amber, you are Amber, so he will probably try to fondle you in the middle of geometry or something.

Fast-forward to school Kate is in love with the new guy (gee, I wonder who that is).

“It had to be him, my new stepbrother.”

That was surprisingly smart of you Amber. I half expect you to guess Pope Francis.

“'I don't know his name yet. Hottie McTottie suits him though.'”

Are you 5?

“Jake threw his arm around her shoulder. 'You know, I'm not used to you not wanting me, Kate. I'm not sure I like this new behaviour'”

I hate you all.

Amber tells Kate that Johnny is her step-brother. Kate takes this as an advantage over the other girls. Amber says she can't/won't help her.

“'Seriously, the hottest guy is your boyfriend, the second hottest guy is your brother and a very close third is your damn stepbrother?'”

Well, when you put it like that it sounds contrived.

Jessica walks up. Amber says “pay up”. Jessica says “as if. You didn't have sex.” (I'm abbreviating. You're welcome.) Jake walks away cause he “don't wanna know”. And Liam says “I don't kiss and tell” but after Amber insists, he confirms “yes, we did bone.” Jessica and Liam argue because Jessica is entitled to his dick because of stereotypes and it all amounts to

I just saved you two pages on boring as shit “conflict” but I will share this gem

“'You're not supposed to be with some brown haired, grey eyed, little freak!'”

Jessica is shit at insults. First she just calls Amber "emo" and now she is just listing her physical traits. Is it because Jessica is none too bright, or is it because Moseley doesn't want anyone insulting Amber?

They go to class. Naturally, Johnny is in Amber's class. I would have been more surprised if he wasn't. The way he is described, he reminds me of Gerard Way circa 2004 but with less eye make-up and charisma.

...I may or may not still love MCR

The teacher assigns Jessica to show Johnny around. Part of me thought it would be Amber, but it's not like it matters. Johnny says hi to Amber by name.

“How did he know my name?”

He's your step-brother, I'm sure your creeper dad has a photo of you. Or, hell, social media. Technology is not really talked about, which is odd in and of itself, but if this is at a time when the Wii exists, then social media is a thing. He probably Facebook stalked you.

“...everyone was asking if Liam and I were an item, and how long we'd been together. Blah, blah, blah – it was the same thing over and over and I was already bored of it.”

Welcome to my life.

Amber tells Liam about Johnny. They shit talk Jessica. At lunch, Johnny asks to sit with them but retracts the question when he started hearing crickets. Kate feels cock-blocked. Amber calls him back. They chat.

“'Stephen showed me a photo of you. I haven't seen one of your brother though, so I have no idea who he is'”

See? Creepy, but not because of Johnny and it makes sense. Was that so hard Moseley?

Amber introduces Jake and Johnny. Jake is his usual charming self.

“'Hey, how's it going?' Jake growled. His face was hard and not at all friendly.”

Amber did you expect any less from him?

More chatting and a little flirting from Kate. Johnny answers the “where did you go before” question with

“'I actually went to an all-boys school in Mersey'”

Okay, I have no idea where that is. Google powers go!

...Mersey is a river in the western part of the UK and apparently there is a Boston in the eastern part. I know a lot of this was assumptions on my part, because I am an American and I naturally assumed that the Boston she was referring to was the one in Massachusetts, but I still should not be just figuring out the setting on page 193.

Also, this changes the felony kidnapping charge and other assumptions I made about legal action DBD could take. If anyone knows enough about British law to comment, please do, because I would like to know how this changes things.

Anyway...

Kate flirts some more with Johnny and Jake is grumpy.

“Jake was totally crushing on Kate!”

I sure somebody somewhere cares, but I don't.

Johnny hands his class schedule to Amber.

“...he had every single afternoon class with me.”

Amber is unnerved which makes sense.

“...what if he went home and my father asked about me?”

This is a valid concern but you could just say “hey, could you not talk to my dad about me” you don't have to say it is because he raped your for 8 years, you could just say that you don't have a good relationship.

Jessica walks up.

Amber: “I saw that shirt worn exactly like that on the hooker on the corner last night.”

Jessica: “You hang out on street corners?”

Amber: “When I'm meeting with your mom I do”

Guys, I think Amber just cam out to us. I know this is supposed to be a “your mom” joke but what Amber is really saying is that she pays for female hookers. Or is Amber saying she is a hooker? Cause Johns and Janes don't hang out on the street corners to meet hookers, they usually drive up. Or is Amber saying that she is Jessica's mother's pimp? Cause that is totally what we need in our leading lady. The ability to frighten and abuse sex workers. Why is this more complicated than it needs to be?

Jessica walks off (defeated, I guess) and more chatting ensues. Johnny is trying to be nice and get to know them since he is stuck there. There is even more chatting, so much so actually, that we go from lunch to after school in one sentence.

Johnny shows a family picture he has in his wallet. Amber wonders if DBD beats them.

“The physical abuse was severe – Jake had gotten the brunt of it – but it was the sexual abuse that left mental scars that I knew I still wasn't over.”

Physical abuse also leaves mental scars, just so you know. And I would like to see evidence of the scars from your sexual abuse beyond the subsequent line

“Memories of those Sundays flashed through my mind...”

Because, as I said in the last chapter, we really don't know what happened. Don't just say “bad things happened” show me what bad things or at least bits of the bad things and how they effect you. You know, basic story telling.

Liam and Jake finish practice. Both Amber and Liam are missing each other because it has been nearly 8 hours since they were alone together. Cause that's healthy.

They all check out Johnny's car, a BMW Z4. That is a 40k car if DBD bought it new, and he gave it to a teenager.

Liam talks about owning one when he becomes a pro hockey player. How big is hockey in the UK? You hear about football all the time but not really hockey.

Anyway...

The chapter ends with Amber happy at the prospect of cuddling. Woo. Going forward, I really hope that Johnny doesn't become a romantic rival for Liam, cause he seems overly attached to Amber already.

Boy Window Chapter 16: I Can't Even

Last time in Boy Window...we changed point of view characters for no apparent reason, and we find out that Liam's dick can magically cure PTSD in just 6 days!

Chapter 16

For as much I was harping on Moseley for changing point-of-view characters, the sad thing is it didn't trip me up. What I mean is, Liam and Amber have the same narrative voice. This is not a good thing. It shows a lack of characterization. Different people talk differently. Even if two people are talking about the same thing and are speaking the same language, they will use different words and explain things in different ways. That why teachers can read 100 essays with the same prompt and each still be different.

Anyway...

“~Amber~”

Hades' shadowy helm, I just reconciled myself to the story being from Liam's perspective.

“...I literally couldn't keep the moronic grin from my face.”

You called it moronic, not me, but I also don't disagree.

“And I actually enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would too.”

Which is to say, at all?

“I glanced at the clock, wincing because we now didn't have time for a shower as we'd been fooling around for too long.”

You had sweaty acrobatic sex multiple times in the last 8 hours and you don't want to take a shower before you go to dance practice? Gross. Just gross.

“'OK. But please try not to shake that fine ass in my face too much, or I might have to rip those sexy sweats off you and take you right in front of your crew.'”

I regret eating so close to reading this, cause that line made me sick to my stomach.

“I giggled at his comment.”

Don't encourage him, Amber.

“He'd never said anything like that to me before, and I blushed like crazy as I slapped his shoulder in reprimand.”

That isn't a “oh Mr James, how you do go on” this is a “Liam, you shouldn't threaten me with sex because I'm dancing in front of you.”

Liam leaves so they can both get dressed.

“I shook my head at myself as I realised that he'd turned me into some kind of pervert too.”

Because your watching his retreating backside? That does not a pervert make.

Fast-forward through dance practice.

“By the time we finished, I was tired and sweating.”

And you still have sex-funk all over you, super gross!

“[Liam] seemed to be smiling more than normal. I guess it was hard for him, waiting a whole week for sex...”

“...I bet he'd never done that in his life.”

I'm sure baby Liam was having all the sex.

“Wait, have we only been dating a week?”

I would say this is about quality over quantity, but there is a shortage of both so...play me out Salem!

“It seemed like we'd been together forever because everything was just so easy...”

When I say that I don't mean that as a compliment.

“Once we'd finished practicing...”

I thought you were already done. Did you finish twice? Do you need a cigarette?

They get sandwiches and eat while snuggling under a tree. Amber thinks about her life.

“I never thought I would ever have anything like this with a boy […] After what my father did with all the touching, I guess I was a little scarred.”

“A little scarred.” So, what did she only have a touch of PTSD? Is that why she got over it so fast, because she was only a smidgen damaged? Her and the Black Knight must be related.

“All the time I'd thought I didn't ever want a boyfriend, I never realised I already had the perfect boy, who was sweet and kind and kept me safe every night.”

Unless you are one of the “skanks” he was using to fill the time before his dream girl gave him a chance, then he was less perfect, sweet and kind.

They joke about breaking up, don't ask, and Liam says.

“'Everywhere you go, I'll be following behind you, begging for another shot. I'll be just like an obsessive stalker'”

“'Maybe I should just keep you then.'”

You know this would be terrifying if they were being serious.

A page break later, we are back at Amber's house.

“As usual the place was a mess. Thankfully, Jake had already started. We had to do a really good job this time because my mom was due back tomorrow. She had no idea there was a raging party in her house every week.”

I don't get how that would work. Liam's parents are shown to be active in their life. Even if they kept the noise level down every Friday, they would notice the streets lined with cars, or the inordinate number of people going in and out of Amber's house, and then they would tell the mom. They wouldn't even have to be nosy neighbors either, this is just a general sense of awareness.

Kate comes over and we are told she asked Amber questions about sexy times but we never experience them. That would require Amber to reflect on the experience, consider how this changed her and their relationship, and what this means in a larger sense. But we already had her say it was awesome and different, that counts as character development right?

Kate flirts with Jake.

“If he didn't want her to hit on him, then why set himself up for it?”

Yeah, Jake was totally asking for it. He said he wasn't interested, which is practically liking asking her for sex.

Liam goes home to keep up pretenses.

“I kissed him hungrily at the door, before skipping to my room, reading for an hour before deciding on a nice soak in the bath.”

Why does this need to be one sentence? And if she “forgets” her clothes again I may hit someone.

“I was a little sore from having sex, and on tip of that, dancing for hours this morning made my muscles a little tight.”

Not to mention that you have yet to bathe after any of that activity.

Sexy

“'Hey, you,' Liam said from the door way a little while later.”

Bathrooms are the one room that almost always have a lock on it, so why does she never use it? It's just a matter of time before Jake walks in on her.

And Liam joins her in the bath because why the fuck not. This is a thing that happens in a lot of books but I never understand it. Most bath tubs are not big enough to fit two people over the age of 5.

A page break interrupts bath time before it becomes sexy time and Amber talks about how she can't wait for her mom to come home that night.

“...I hadn't seen her for just over two weeks.”

So she left right before chapter two started? This makes me realize that her mom never calls to check in with them. She leaves for a few weeks and never bothers to call her kids to see if they are ok, need grocery money, or just to ask after them? Coyote's cunning smile, she is a shitty parent.

“I was sat on Liam's lap...”

“was sat” who says that?

The mom pulls into the drive way.

“Jake jumped up at the same time as me and wrapped his arm around my waist, laughing as he threw me onto the sofa.”

“My mom loved Liam, she always had done.”

“always had done”? Is this slang?

Amber tells her mom that she fell in love. Her mother is confused because the one thing that everyone can agree upon is how unrealistic it is for Amber to have anything resembling human emotions.

Maybe she is ferengi?

Her mom even goes so far as to say

“'Oh, Amber, I never thought you would be able to!'”

I know she meant that in a “because of your trauma” way but it is still hilarious.

Eventually they tell the mom that she is seeing Liam.

“'I should have known! All that teasing and stuff, I didn't realise it was sexual tension'”

I can't even...her mom is talking to her daughter and her boyfriend about their sexual tension...I don't know...I just...broken.

And it gets better. (Read as worse).

Mom: “Your father's moved to this town.”

Jake: “Motherfucker! I told him to stay away!”

You know what would have helped with keeping him away. I don't know THE FUCKING POLICE! Just telling him, “And don't back here ever again” isn't going to do shit. This is why things like restraining orders, prisons, and common fucking sense exist. Moseley can dedicate 7 pages to foreplay, but she can't take 2 sentences to explain why no one has had douche-bag-dad arrested for any number of crimes?

“'Jake, he wants to get to know you two again. He says he's sorry...'”

Yeah he says he is sorry for raping your sister from the age of 5 until she turned 13. And he is super sorry for beating us every night. And he is sorry for emotionally manipulating us. Because a disingenuous apology is all that is needed to erase a life time of violence. She really is the worst mother ever.

“'I hate that I'm the one to have to tell you this, but it's not my fault.'”

It's not her fault for what he did, but it is her fault for not doing anything now. He has no power over her now, and her in action is causing problems for her children. Worst mother ever.

Mom says that their step-brother (Johnny) is starting at their high school the next day and that they have a half brother. Conflict I guess? Jake beats up furniture instead of doing something productive. Liam stands protectively by Amber, once again acknowledging the fact that Jake is a threat to her safety. Jake calms down and makes an off-handed comment about if the new wife knows that the dad is a rapist.

“I flinched again, trying to block out the memories that were trying to drag me under.”

This is another example of how this could be a tense powerful moment but it isn't. Thoughts of her past intruding on her, making her panic, but this is the only description we get. Jake is all apologetic and Liam is angry at him, but I almost don't see why.

Amber makes her excuses and leaves with Liam following shortly after.

“I knew I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up for a happy ending. I'd never have happy ending.”

I am all for victim's rights. If you are a victim, you can choose to not press charges or seek medical help. However, I lose a lot of sympathy for you when complain about justice not being served when you do not report it. The only thing “keeping” Amber from her “happy ending” is her reporting her father. It has only been 3 years since his last attempted rape which is within the statute of limitations for most states, and she has two people witness the attempt, and 3 people who will corroborate a history of violence. I know I should be happy that this provides an obvious conflict but it is a stupid and easily resolved one. I would understand it if she had to convince people that the rape happened, but all the important people in her life know for a fact that it did. So bringing the dad back at this juncture is a sad attempt at creating conflict when there isn't any. It almost feels like two bad short stories smashed together into one bad long story.

SIDE NOTE: I thought that this was the end of the chapter, it sure feels like the end of a chapter. It isn't. There are 5 pages left and this happens.

“~Liam~”

The chapter rewinds a little but with Liam narrating. Amber says something like “well, nothing to be done about it” and this is Liam's narration.

“...she stated, as if it just didn't matter that the man who beat her, sexually abused her for years, and finally tried to rape her, was coming back and wanted to see her again.”

So it's not just me. No one believes she is actually effected by this. And what does he mean “finally tried to rape her”? So what happened? Did the dad just molest her from age 5 to 13? That is still awful, but this makes me realize that we are never told exactly what happened all those times. Even when Amber is having an episode, she just says stuff like “I feel dirty” or “the memories attacked”. You don't have to be gory with the details, and I get Liam not knowing, but we spent 14 and a half chapters in Amber's head and we never get a glimpse of the “uncontrollable memories” that haunt her every day.

Amber goes to bed, Liam says he is going to help Jake clean up the broken furniture from Jake's rampage. Instead, Liam tells Jake not to approach Douche-bag-dad on his own. Liam goes to cuddle Amber until she falls asleep, then sneaks back out.

“Apparently, Stephen had wanted to see them again to make amends, or so he said anyway.”

Yes, Liam, we know that. It has been aggressively asserted for a while now. Get on with it.

They talk about always being with Amber so DBD doesn't catch her unawares.

“'You know I'm off to college in a couple of months. Well, I was going to turn down my scholarship to Boston and go to college closer to here so I could still stay with her, but if the worst comes to the worst, I'll take her with me to Boston.'”

Here's what's wrong with this plan.

1. SHE IS A MINOR! Amber said they live 3 hours outside of Boston, depending on the direction, that could cross state lines, possibly even the Canadian border. Which would make this felony kidnapping. Why does this matter?
2. THE DAD STILL HAS PARENTAL RIGHTS! Remember how you guys will not file charges against douche-bag-dad? If DBD finds out that Liam has taken his victim, he can file felony kidnapping charges because as far as the government is concerned, he is only a concerned parent. Even if the mother consents, the father could fuck everything up.
3. WHY ARE YOU TALKING TO JAKE ABOUT THIS!? Why not the mother that has to give consent or, I don't know, AMBER. You know the person you are planning on running away with?

Liam tries to convince me with internal monologue why this is the only option. He fails. Jake is convinced though because nothing makes sense in this world. Further proof of that is when Liam asks the mom if he can spend the night in Amber's bed and she says “yeah, OK.” When he tells his parents, they don't bat a eye, they just ask for safe sex. Does nobody care that Amber is a minor? Again, if DBD found out he could file statutory rape charges against Liam because everyone in universe is too stupid to get his parental rights revoked.

Whatever. Liam talks to his mom about Amber's birth control, like all teenagers do with their parents. Moseley attempts to cover up the general illogic by saying

“under normal circumstances, Margaret would have kicked my ass just for asking”

Yeah, I don't believe it, but I also don't care anymore. I just want this chapter to end. And thankfully, it does. Liam and Amber cuddle. Jake brings them food. Sleep happens and the chapter ends for realsies.

Boy Window Chapter 15: Quick! Liam time.

Last time in Boy Window...even more pointless flirting, ice skating, I love yous and maybe some plot in there.

Chapter 15

“~Liam~”

...Please tell me that does not mean what I think it means.

“I had been with Amber for a week now...”

No. I refuse to believe that this is happening.

“I'd wanted her for so long that I was a little worried that if I ever did get her that she would never be able to live up to what I had imagined […] But being with her was better than I'd even imagined it could be.”

Do you just want to see me cry? Is that it? Why are we suddenly changing perspectives? Will Liam be the point-of-view character from now on? Why can't this chapter be from Amber's perspective? Or why couldn't you have written this in third person?

There is nothing saying that an author can't do whatever they want but there are reasons why you wouldn't want to do this. For the past 14 chapters we have had one voice. It has been slow and tensionless but that hegemony has set a pace. A consistent pace is important because it allows the reader to slip into the narrative. Switching the point-of-view character would change the pace and make it harder for the reader to get lost in the story. The author can do this without breaking narrative flow in one of two ways. The first is using a third person narrator, that way when the point-of-view character changes the way the narrator talks doesn't (an example is the Song of Ice and Fire Series). The second way is by setting up a pattern early on with a set number of chapters per point-of-view (this would be like Rick Riordan's Kane Chronicles). Since neither of these things happen, it will make the shift jarring.

Enough ranting, onward with the story!

“I couldn't wait for tonight. As usual, there was a party at Jake's.”

Liam gets dressed and it's about as interesting as Amber getting dressed.

“I was so excited to see her that I could burst into song any moment.”

"No! No singing!"

“I still couldn't believe that someone like me would be lucky enough to have someone like her fall in love with them. She could have any guy she wanted; she was beautiful, smart, funny, and kind.”

I have seen no evidence of this female paragon.

“Practically every guy in school lusted after her”

Does Moseley think that sexual assault is a compliment? Cause that would explain a lot.

“I struggled to watch her at her dance practice every Saturday, it was such a freaking turn-on seeing her jumping around, shaking her behind.”

The more he talks the more I think he needs to learn how to masturbate.

He talks about how amazingly wonderful Amber is some more.

“If I thought she would say yes, I would ask her to marry me right now, but I just didn't want to rush her or pressure her into anything.”

“Jake had been great so far too. He actually seemed to like the fact that Amber was happy...”

Let's take a moment to recognize that Liam is surprised that Jake is ok with Amber being happy.

“We did have a few words the day after he found out about us, but I'd never tell Amber about that.”

Cause secrecy is key to any relationship.

“It was primarily just threats of decapitation and castration – which I knew he meant.”

Why are they friends again? Cause he seems to just like people that abuse him.

The party starts and Liam complains about the girls and the bet.

“I didn't even want to think about what Jessica had offered me in case I got any mental images of it. My subconscious mind wandered to the couple of times we'd been out and had sex; I shuddered a little at the thought.”

Shuddered in disgust? In fear? In horror? Cause each would have a different connotation.

“'...the only one I'll be with is my girlfriend. I'm not interested in any of these skanks.'”

Yeah all those women you had sex with sure are skanks, but your not because you've found true love.

“My breath caught in my throat, Amber was standing there in a little black dress that clung to her shapely body and came to her mid-thigh.”

Liam berates himself for not talking.

“'Um...Hi, Angel,'” I mumbled, my voice sounding tight. Wow, that was real smooth Liam! God, I'm such a dick.”

Not for that you aren't. For other reasons, sure, but not for that.

“'Hi,' she greeted in her sexy voice.”

Why was it sexy? How was it sexy? Is it sexy because you want to have sex or is it the timbre? These things are important.

Flirting happens.

“'Don't tease me tonight, Angel. Seriously, you look too hot, I can't take it'”

Will you expire from lack of blood flow to your brain?

Casey (random idiot) says he is going to try to tap dat ass. Liam says she is taken and naturally, Casey guesses that they are together. Casey says Jake will kick Liam's ass when he finds out. Liam says he knows.

“'No way! Did he beat the crap out of you?'”

Casey, you see Liam every day, have you noticed an ass kicking?

“I didn't bother telling him not to say anything; I wanted this out in the open.”

I don't agree with Amber's reasons for not telling everyone but to out her like that without her knowledge when you could easily just ask him to stay silent, is mean.

And what's with all the “;” there are 288, and I know it is a perfectly legitimate form of punctuation but I'm with my first love (Kurt Vonnegut) on this.

Not that there is anything wrong with transvestites or hermaphrodites.

“I couldn't care less about the money. In a couple of years, when I was playing hockey professionally, that would seem like peanuts and I could give her anything she wanted.”

Cause we all know that every good high school player goes professional. That was the point of that movie Coach Carter right? I'm sure that was.

Liam tells Amber that Casey knows. And true to form, she says

“'Well then, Liam, if people are going to find out, we might as well give them a show'”

Both me and Liam want to know what that will mean.

“She giggled and pulled my face down to hers, kissing me, hard.”

And dance floor make outs happen. She says “I love you”

“The gasping started again from the watching crowd.”

How sad is it that all I can think about is what happened to Kate? She was dancing with Amber before Liam cut in and now she gets to watch her favorite fantasy play out. Knowing her, she is...busy.

“I knew people were talking about us, and literally the whole room was staring”

Well you were getting a little porny there, so I don't blame them for watching.

“Tonight was the best party ever, just because I got to hold her hand and kiss her.”

Sweet, but those are some low standards.

“Even the girls didn't hit on me, which made a pleasant change.”

“'I'm tired, Liam. Want to take me to bed?' She asked, raising her eyebrows teasingly.”

No...

“'Sure, Angel'”

Don't do this to me Moseley.

“She locked the door and stepped up close to me”

You can't be serious.

“When she got to my jeans she immediately started unbuttoning them too.”

They have only been together a week. She can't have gotten over 8 years of violence and violation in 6 days.

“'You OK?' I asked curiously […] She nodded in response and took hold of the bottom of her dress, pulling it up over her head in one smooth movements.”

“She smiled making my heart beat faster. 'Make love to me,' she whispered”

Both Liam and I call shenanigans on her being over her PTSD and he says he is willing to wait.

“She laughed. 'Well I'm sorry, Liam, but I just can't wait for you any longer. I need you to be ready now.'”

Aside from being insane, that sounds a little rapey to me. If Liam does not feel right having sex you shouldn't pressure him Amber.

Amber gets handsy. Liam is somehow surprised by this brazen act because

“I gaped, my mouth popped open in shock. Was she not actually joking?”

Why would you think she is joking Liam? That would be the lamest joke ever. “Hey honey I got over those years of abuse in the 6 days we've been together. We can bone now if you want...j/k I'm so hilarious”?

“'Liam, stop talking' she instructed.”

Yeah, Liam, how dare you be concerned at this sudden and mind boggling emotional break through. Don't be considerate about the 8 years of sexual abuse your girlfriend suffered at the hands of her father. No, just have sex with her.

They get into fore-play and Liam is all

“Shit, she is serious!”

Gee, ya think.

“The desire to screw her was overwhelming”

Quoth the poet.

They talk about making it special because this is fiction so naturally everyone's first time is like watching Avatar in IMAX (ie sensory stimulating but narratively unfulfilling).

“My whole body was rejoicing at the thought of being with her...”

We are going on five pages of foreplay. Given his usual state of arousal, I'm surprised he has lasted this long without needing new pants.

“...I had to be sure she wasn't doing this for the wrong reasons; I'd never forgive myself if she regretted this in the morning. 'This isn't about the bet is it?'”

Of course she is going to deny it, but I wouldn't believe her Liam. The bet has always been on the forefront of her mind.

More foreplay, then they have sex during a page break. The chapter resumes with post-coital snuggling.

Liam: “I'm sorry I hurt you”

Amber: “Liam, that was so totally worth it”

If this were real life, she would say the same thing but it would be an awkward lie.

“I'd never had any complaints before, but I'd never actually cared if the girl enjoyed herself before.”

Ever the gentleman Liam is. I want a story from one of his cast offs. It's harder to like Liam as a person when you think about all the Jessicas he banged because he couldn't have sex with his best friend's traumatized sister. All those poor girls with hopes and feelings or who just wanted to satisfy an itch, and to him they were no better than a flesh light with a pulse.

They both say how amazing they are in bed. They should really lay off on the ego stroking for at least 20 minutes. Refractory period is a thing you know.

Of course, since this is fictional, Liam is already up and ready to go for round 2.

“She raised her eyebrows, and a slow smile spread across her face as she rolled me onto my back, straddling me, looking like a freaking sex goddess sitting on top of me.”

I'm sure Ishtar is offended by that remark.

Amber then says

“'This time I want to have a try. Tell me if I do something wrong.'”

...I get the second sentence, but the first confuses me. Have a try at what exactly? Where you not participating before? Did you just lay there like a pile of pillows he was humping? What is more confusing is that she supposedly enjoyed laying like a pile of pillows he was humping. I've heard of doggy style, but that sounds like they took it a little too far.

And they have more sex during another page break. The morning after is all rainbows and butterflies and possibly more sex as the chapter fades to black.

There is so much about this chapter that frustrates me. The fact that we change point-of-view characters, that our main character gets over her PTSD in 6 days, and the point that those two meet. The chapter were Amber finally is able to face her demons and have a sexual experience, we don't even get to be a part of it. This could have been powerful and there was no reason for this to be from Liam's perspective. The whole chapter just baffles me. 

Boy Window Chapter 14: The Song That Never Ends

Last time in Boy Window...there was a lot of pointless flirting and a trip to the family planning clinic.

Chapter 14

“I woke in the morning with a huge smile on my face. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and I had woken up next to the world's most sexy boy, who just so happened to be in love with me.”

I don't know if it is because I'm a grumpy kitty today or not, but this saccharine “come on get happy” shtick bugs me.

Liam asks if they can tell people they are together, Amber says she needs to do some more “prep work”. When a guy does this in books he is usually the bad guy. Ya know, the asshole who leads you on, says he loves you but won't introduce you to his friends or family. Good enough to sleep with but not good enough to treat like a person.

“He groaned. 'By, 'prep work', you don't mean you're going to flirt and make me horny as hell again like yesterday, do you?”

Please tell me I am not in for another 15 pages of pointless flirting. Pazuzu would not be so cruel.

“'You'll have to wait and see, won't you? Oh, and I give you my permission to touch me a little today if you want'”

Like your permission has ever stopped anyone before, but I appreciate the consent.

Liam jumps on the chance to feel her up.

“His fingers trailed across my body slowly, from my face, down my neck, across my breasts and stomach, finally settling just on the inside of my thigh.”

“You give them an inch, they swim all over you.”

Some aggravating teasing goes on. Aggravating for them because it goes no where. Aggravating for me because I don't know why it is here. What does this add to the plot? This probably wouldn't bug me if they didn't spend half of nearly every chapter for the past 9 chapters making out. It also probably wouldn't bug me if I found it enticing, but alas, I am not turned on by this.

“I wanted Liam to look like he really wanted me in front of everyone...”

As opposed to what? He seems to only know how to gaze at you with longing.

“...because I didn't want to keep lying about our relationship.”

Sure you don't.

She puts on a mini skirt and a black V-neck. Again, she has said in chapters past how uncomfortable showing skin makes her so why does she own this? I know I covered this in chapter 4 but it still bugs me.

Amber heads to the kitchen where Liam has a bowl ready for her.

“My heart melted into a puddle because of his thoughtfulness.”

I like how it is only thoughtful because they are together.

“Liam was just drinking a glass of water, and as he turned around, he almost choked. Jake slapped him on the back roughly, and I just laughed.”

Ah to be young and laugh at your partner nearly choking. So romantic.

“'Angel, how the hell am I supposed to concentrate all day, knowing that my beautiful girlfriend looks like a freaking sex goddess?'”

You're one of those people who want stricter dress codes for girls in school, aren't you Moseley? Amber is wearing a skirt and a shirt. Don't get me wrong, she could be working that skirt and shirt like Daisy Duke.

Anyone else miss the Dukes of Hazard?

But why is this such a big deal? All I'm getting out of this is that Liam needs to learn how to masturbate.

Fast forward to lunch time.

“This was going to be great, and Jessica was going to hate every second of it.”

Why is Amber so focused on pissing off Jessica? Why does she care so much about one girl? Sure, Jessica said some “mean” comments, but the only crime she has committed so far has been flirting with Amber's boyfriend. And she didn't even know that he was Amber's boyfriend. Yeah, she set up this stupid bet but Amber is the one more concerned with winning money than she is with being open about her relationship. There are half a dozen guys who sexually assaulted Amber and none of them are mentioned with half the contempt that Jessica is. Is it because she has had sex? Is it because she wears provocative clothes? Is it because Moseley feels the need to have a female rival? Cause those are the only reasons I can think of.

Anyway...

Amber's B-list friend Sean says that everyone has been talking about Amber's “killer legs”.

“'Actually, I've been checking you out too,' Kate joked.”

You don't need to “joke”, Kate. There is nothing wrong with being bisexual.

“'Me too,' Sarah added, making us laugh harder.”

I don't get why this is funny. Is it because Sarah is so super straight? Is it because we already have our one token LGBTQA person? It was funny when Kate said it because you know she probably took an extra long “bathroom” break when she saw Amber that morning, but we know nothing about Sarah. I don't know, maybe I'm over thinking this.

“'Seriously, Rebecca, if you touch me one more time I'm going to go speak to someone about it. This is bordering on sexual harassment.'”

This comes from Liam and while I'm glad someone is finally getting called out for their bad behavior, it makes me realize that this is the first time that any character has out right mentioned sexual harassment. For a book that is 30% sexual assault, you would think that phrase would come up more.

Side note: I just looked at the page count because I thought “surely, the end of this chapter is nigh”...Nope. 12 pages to go.

“This is the song that never ends..."

Amber goes to flirt with Liam and for this next part I will have to type the whole thing because I can't even begin to explain it.

“I stood up and perched on the table in front of him, propping one foot between his legs, resting it on the bench. My foot was almost touching his crotch, but he didn't seem to notice; he was still studying my face worriedly. 'I hurt my leg in gym class. It's really sore. Do I have a bruise?' I asked, opening my legs slightly and pointing to my inner thigh. His eyes instantly dropped down to my legs. I'm betting he had a clear view of my panties because a pained and hungry expression crossed his face. I felt a little like a slut for doing this, but no one else could see what he was seeing, otherwise I wouldn't have done it.”

1. How is no one else seeing this? Unless Liam has his back to a wall, which we have not established, then the person in Liam's seat one table back is going to see.
2. Why does Amber get to say she is not a slut when she slut shames everyone else? I'm not saying that she is a slut, but you don't get to say she isn't a slut when you have been aggressively calling other young women sluts for the same behavior.
3. Who does this? No, really, who does this? Am I reading the novelization of Agent Aika?
4. I think part of the reason this bothers me when the other girls doing it didn't bother me is motivation. Moseley established in chapter 2 that all females great and small throw themselves at Liam constantly. I have no problem with this in theory. I find it unrealistic, but I am willing to suspend my disbelief and accept it. Which is why I am only slightly bothered by those people still throwing themselves at Liam for the bet. They wanted to have sex with him before, but now there is a financial bonus if they do. Amber seems to only want to have sex with him for mercenary reasons. Before the bet, she kept saying how she was not ready to have sex. The bet happens and then she starts picking out birth control. She tells the audience and Liam that it is because she likes Liam and wants to have sex, but this is all too much too fast for someone who has gone untreated for PTSD for so long.
5. WHY ARE THERE STILL 12 PAGES LEFT!?

“'How about you kiss it better for me?' I suggested, raising my eyebrows and trying to look sexy. Some of the guys sat at his table groaned as they watched the exchange.”

Ew, do we need to get the emergency pants?

“Just before his lips touched my skin, I moved my leg away.”

How? His head is between your knees, that is not exactly an easy position to extricate yourself from.

Anyway...

Liam says he loves his girlfriend, Amber pretends that she is not his girlfriend and walks off to the women folk chanting

As lunch is ending, Liam whisks Amber away to a conveniently unlocked and secluded classroom.

And guess what happens? If you guessed that they discuss the geopolitical climate on the African continent you would be wrong. That's okay, it was my guess too. No, they make out before deciding to cut school. They go ice skating again. We find more out about Liam's goals and ambitions.

“Liam wanted to play hockey professionally – he had already been scouted by numerous schools for next year. He'd been offered a full athletic scholarship to a few places, but the one he chose was a really great school in Boston – which mean that he would be moving away in the fall.”

So...this is set in America? That's weird because she favors British spelling and phrases, but I guess he could be an international student.

Amber thinks about her trust issues. Again, I don't know why she has trust issues, but whatever.

“I carefully wrapped my legs around his wait while he skate around, occasionally doing small spins and changing to skate backwards. His eyes never left mine. It was the most erotic and sexy thing that had ever happened to me...”

He did the same exact thing in chapter 4 but with a more confusing description. Come on, you were there, I was there, Super Sonic was there. It was a non-sense party.

Liam takes Amber out to dinner. With what money, I don't know. Jake has a part time job but all Liam does is sleep and make out with Amber.

“I couldn't help but wonder how I didn't know anything about him before we got together. It was probably because the only personality he'd ever showed me was the asshole side...”

Other than the one time you are willing to admit he sexually harassed you, he hasn't been an asshole. Nothing about Liam has changed.

Amber asks why he made her hate him so much. Liam says

“'You know, there's a thin line between love and hate. Maybe you loved me and didn't realise.'”

People always say that but I don't buy it. For example, I hate this book and it would take a lot of changes to make me like it.

Liam says that his bad behavior was all Jake's doing, which we knew because this is the third time someone has said so. I guess the third time is the charm because it finally clicks for Amber.

“'You know, I always though you had a split personality'”

Considering how well PTSD is represented, that's not entirely out of the question.

They remissness about younger Liam picking on younger Amber. It involves Liam pretending to cut off her bears head and throwing it away. Amber says that Jake took him out of the trash, but Liam says he never did anything to the bear at all. Amber is surprised but I don't know why. If Liam really cut off her bears head, she would have noticed the stitches. Kids are not oblivious.

“'I'm just glad he didn't kill me for dating you. I can hold my own in a fight, but Jake's a damn psycho when it comes to you.'”

I'm just glad that everyone in universe can see a naked puzzle basement in Jake's future.

Liam says he would never hurt Amber. For the hundredth time she thinks about how he is bound to break her heart.

“I loved him enough to wait for him. I just hoped that he would feel the same in four months' time when all the college skanks were throwing themselves at him and I was a three hour drive away.”

Oh, so they live in the New England area. I know that she indirectly said she goes to Penn State, but she is in high school so I discounted that. Besides, Penn State to Boston, MA is way more than a three hour drive.

More importantly, notice how she says that she hopes he is willing to wait. Well, literally a page later she says this.

“I wasn't worried about him not being able to wait for me because I could see in his eyes he would wait as long as I wanted.”

Trust issues solved! Makes it easy.

And than Amber says

And I shit you not this is Liam's response.

“He looked at me, shock clear across his face. His mouth was hanging open, his eyes wide as he took in what I said.”

He is shocked and confused because she said “I love you”. Let that sink in. Amber's boyfriend, the guy who has been in love with her for as long as they have known each other, is stunned to silence because he cannot comprehend her loving him. And it's not because he doesn't think he is lovable, he can't understand her loving him. Wait, it gets better.

“'You love me? Seriously?'”

The man can't believe it! Neither can I, but the fact that one half of this relationship is questioning the affection of the other half is hilarious. The more I read the more I their emotional role reversal gets funny.

Make outs happen. Quelle surprise. They pause when they realize Jake should be home soon and it would be best if he didn't walk into the lounge with his best friend mounting his topless sister.

“I couldn't keep the smile off my face. Liam loved me and I loved him, and everything was perfect.”

I'm pretty sure I would be more generous if the characters were more likable.

Amber and Jake talk about Liam.

“He laughed. 'Such confidence in a guy who's never managed to hold down a girlfriend before'”

To be fair, he has never had a girlfriend before. That's like saying you shouldn't trust new actors because they've never had big roles before.

We get a whole three lines of dialogue dedicated to the dad-issue. Which amounts to

Jake: “So, do you need to talk to me about Dad or anything?”

Amber: “I don't want to see him”

Jake: “OK, then we won't see him.”

Considering, the previous topic of conversation was about how overprotective Jake is, why would he even ask. He saw what happened last time the dad was mentioned. Was her becoming catatonic not definitive answer?

Jake says he has to see their dad, but does specify why. Jake is 18 and if he is in America, then he is an adult. There is nothing that he would need to see his dad for that his mom could not do.

Amber excuses herself for bed which means that the chapter is over.